Cell Phones

HTC U11 Eyes Review of Pros And Cons

- Analysis by KJ David

At first look, the 2018 HTC U11 Eyes's technical specs seem like a watered-down version of the original HTC U11's. That being said, its downgrades (aka cons) are packaged alongside some encouraging pros as well.

As for its strong points, the U11 Eyes eyes a spot among the top camera phones on the market -- just not in terms of resolution, though, since its 12-megapixel cam shies of the 20-megapixel-and-up shooters rocked by some contemporaries. Still, its imaging pros and cons include 4K-2160p video-recording , both optical and electronic image stabilization , as well as what HTC calls UltraSpeed Autofocus . Up front, the U11 Eyes features twin 5-megapixel cameras (as if to resemble a pair of eyes) decked out with HDR Boost, Bokeh Effect, and its own screen flash function, although an actual frontal LED light would have gone a long way .

Joining its pros and cons is HTC's self-branded Edge Sense technology , which essentially lets you fire up favorite applications by giving the phone a squeeze. This U11 offshoot also features HTC Sense Companion , a virtual assistant that learns the user's usage patterns and makes suggestions based on them. Another key perk is its Face Unlock facial recognition system , which joins its rear-mounted fingerprint scanner in the security department.

Inside its IP67-rated waterproof fuselage is an octa-core 1.8GHz Snapdragon 652 processor alongside 4GB of RAM , the former being a pretty huge downgrade over the U11's 2.45GHz Snapdragon 835 eight-core chip. Fortunately, its cut-downs on the processing front are balanced out by a generous 3930mAh battery power (The U11 only has a 3000mAh capacity) and a 64GB inbuilt memory that can be expanded by a whopping 2TB . Our technical review also revealed that HTC's USonic audio technology is on board as well.

All said, the HTC U11 Eyes might quiver versus the first U11 model when it comes to hardware, but it does manage to stretch the display and boost the battery capacity, while retaining the original's high-end camera, probably to cater to phablet buyers who value battery life over performance.